Beed foeticide: Dr Munde may be booked under MCOCA

Beed: Dr Sudam Munde, who has been held for culpable homicide in connection with the death of a woman while undergoing abortion at his hospital in May, is likely to be booked under Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA), official sources said on Monday.

The possibility of invoking the stringent Act against Munde comes against the backdrop of district civil surgeon Dr Gauri Rathod writing a letter to the authorities concerned. She has asked them to treat female foeticide as "organised crime" and slap MCOCA against erring medicos booked under the Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex selection) Act.

According to district collectorate sources, Munde, who surrendered before the police last month along with his doctor wife, fulfils two of the three criteria needed to attract MCOCA charges.

Munde and his wife Dr Saraswati were booked under section 304 of IPC for culpable homicide after they surrendered before Parli police on June 17.

Meanwhile, over 1,000 private doctors in the district, who went on an indefinite strike from yesterday to protest the Civil Surgeon`s letter, today called off their agitation after meeting District Collector Sunil Kendrekar, district president of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) Dr Kailas Paithankar told reporters.

The civil surgeon in her letter to Kendrekar had said MCOCA could be invoked against doctors booked for female foeticide in the district.

Confirming this Kendrekar told the delegation of doctors that met him at his office that, "I have received the letter and have forwarded it to the Superintendent of Police who has submitted it before the district court. The court will decide whether to book the erring doctors under MCOCA or not. The matter is now sub judice."

Meanwhile, Dr Paithankar clarified that the association does not intend to shield doctors who are found guilty under PCPNDT, but has to make sure that the administration does not persecute all the fraternity for the misdeed of a few members.